This weekend will be the final matches for Blue Hen seniors Katie Hank (seated) and Kori Reigel.

Photo by Delaware Athletics

University of Delaware Volleyball Closes Out 2013 Regular Season This Weekend With Home Matches vs. UNCW, College of Charleston

By Delaware Athletics

Nov 14, 2013

NEWARK, Del. -- The University of Delaware volleyball team will look to close out its 2013 season on a high note this weekend when the Blue Hens host UNCW and the College of Charleston in a pair of matches at the Bob Carpenter Center.

Delaware will face the Seahawks on Friday at 4:30 p.m., prior to the UD women’s basketball game against Wake Forest at 8 p.m. The Blue Hens will then take on the league-leading Cougars Saturday at 7 p.m. on Senior Night, as Blue Hen seniors Katie Hank and Kori Reigel will be honored in a pregame ceremony prior to competing in their final home match.

UD enters the weekend with an 11-15 overall record, including a 3-9 Colonial Athletic Association mark. The Blue Hens, who will be looking to snap a six-match losing skid, have been eliminated from contention in next weekend’s CAA Tournament. UNCW is 17-9 overall and tied for third place in the league standings with a 6-6 record, while the College of Charleston is 21-5 overall and 11-1 in the league, having wrapped up the top spot and the right to host next week’s conference tournament.

Delaware is paced defensively by sophomore Ariel Shonk, who ranks second in the conference and ninth in the nation with 5.56 digs per set. Shonk has posted 573 digs this season, and needs just 13 more to move into the top 10 on the UD single season list.

Sophomore Katie Hillman is leading the Blue Hens with 329 kills, as her 3.19 kills average ranks fifth in the CAA. Redshirt sophomore Chelsea Bryant is seventh in the conference with a team-high .260 hitting percentage, while freshman setter Kali Funk is averaging 7.12 assists per set for Delaware.

The Seahawks enter Friday’s matchup having won three of their last four matches, and posted a 3-0 victory over the Blue Hens on Nov. 3 in Wilmington. Christi Laite leads UNCW with 320 kills and 3.33 kills per set, while Morgan Kline is adding 2.65 kills per set. Alyssa Desjardins and Victoria Phillips have each handed out over 400 assists during the year, while Lindsay Hartmann leads the Seahawks with a 2.99 digs average.

CofC had its 11-match winning streak halted on Sunday by dropping a 3-2 decision to Northeastern, but the Cougars did record a 3-0 verdict over Delaware on Nov. 1 in Charleston.

Kerstin Koehler leads the CAA with a .359 hitting percentage, while Cara Howley ranks second at .326 and Sloane White is third in the league with a .311 percentage. Darcy Dorton paces the Cougars with 3.46 kills per set, while Andi Zbojniewicz is averaging a team-high 3.47 digs per set.

Saturday’s match features a Hike & Spike promotion, as anyone who shows a valid ticket stub from the afternoon’s Delaware-Richmond football game will receive free admission. Saturday will also be Dad & Daughter Night, where fans who buy an adult ticket receive one youth ticket for free. T-shirts will also be given away to the first 150 fans in attendance, compliments of First State Orthopaedics, and postgame autographs with the entire team will take place following the match.